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How Can Kids Get More Out Of Their Education?

If there’s one thing that a lot of people struggle with, it’s trying to get kids interested and engaged in their education. The truth is that can often feel like more work getting kids to want to learn than teaching them at all. Of course, most of us can look back on our own history and point to times when we would rather have done anything than deal with school. Whether you’re a teacher or a homeschooling parent, or even just a parent trying to help with your kids homework, keeping them motivated can be a serious challenge. Of course, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t things that you can do in order to help your kids become more engaged when they’re learning. With that in mind, here are some things that you can do to help your kids get more out of their education.

Get them out into the world

One thing that it’s easy to forget is that a classroom isn’t necessarily the best environment for learning. That might sound a little odd but it’s true. The reality is that a lot of kids much prefer a more practical approach to the way they learn. They want to see how things apply in the real world. That’s where things like NST’s range of school trips come in incredibly useful. They allow kids the chance to get out into the world and understand a little more about their place in it, as well as recontextualizing their learning in a more concrete way.

Understand their interests

It’s easy to assume that the kid in your class, or at home, doesn’t care about anything because they have absolutely no interest in the things that you’re trying to teach them. However, the truth is that most kids are much more inclined to engage with something if it aligns with their interests. Figure out how to put their learning in a context that they understand and are interested in and you’ll find that the change in their attitude is like night and day.

Help them understand why they’re learning

When you’re a kid sitting in a classroom learning facts of the bored or listening to your teacher tell you something, it’s easy to assume that all of it is pointless. After all, what will you ever use algebra for, right? Well, if you find that kids in class or at home are reacting in this way, the key is to try and help them understand what the practical reasons for learning the things that they’re learning are. If you’re just teaching them so they can pass an exam, you’re doing it wrong.

Of course, sometimes you’re just going to have to come to terms with the fact that some kids aren’t going to be that interested in learning at all. Or, at least, they’re not going to be interested in the kind of learning that they would do at school. Perhaps they’d be happier learning on the job in an apprenticeship or in employment instead. Not every kind of learning is right for everyone.